Breaking Down the Barriers
by allyg1990
Summary: People only ever see my power as a curse- an admantium barrier to love, something to be feared. Now i see the 'curse' for what it really is- a barrier only true love can break. ROMY. WARNING: MAJOR FLUFF ALERT. : Reviews greatly appreciated!


_People only ever see my power as a curse- an adamantium barrier to love, something to be feared. Most everyone used to sneak around me, careful to give me space, wary of getting close just in case they accidentally touched my skin. It makes you bitter when people tiptoe around you as if you're a time bomb- as if your uncontrolled power would leap out from behind your clothes and drain them dry. For so long I stayed locked inside my own little cell of personal space, secretly yearning for a hand to reach through the bars and grasp mine._

_Now I see the 'curse' for what it really is- a barrier that only true love can break. _

_It took him a while to worm his way through the menacing barrier I put up- all the teasing, flirting, I just pushed it away. But then we became friends, though he wasn't like any other friend I'd ever had. No-one else would have gone out of their way to treat me like a normal person- to grab my wrist to keep me from leaving after a petty fight, to tickle me until I couldn't breathe for laughing, and once in a blue moon, to take my gloved hands in his own half-clothed ones, lift them to his eyes, and examine each leather-capped finger with the rabid curiosity of a child. _

_I still remember the day he did it- it was after a bout of tickling, when I was red in the face, striped hair sticking up in all directions, my heavy breathing almost the only sound breaking the awkward silence._

_I say almost, because his breathing was nearly as heavy, a maddening grin spreading over his face as he carefully brushed a few white strands of hair out of my eyes. My breath caught in my throat, his red-on-black eyes searching mine as he unconsciously leaned closer._

"_I want t' kiss y'." He breathed, his voice eager, self-assured, but showing not one trace of fear._

_I couldn't tear my eyes away. "You can't." His grin only widened in the half light._

"_I can." _

_There is something wildly thrilling about the way the man you never knew you were in love with places his covered palms on your bare cheeks, lowers his face so close to yours that you can taste his breath, and whispers, "I'm not afraid."_

_I remember being on the brink of protesting when he pressed his lips to mine, only briefly, pulling away as the blue-white flash of my powers fanned out around us._

"_Best kiss of m' life." He promised, eyelids fluttering as he dropped to the side. I couldn't disagree._

"Of course y' couldn't." Remy breaks in from where he has settled over her right shoulder. "'m just a good kisser."

Rogue rolls her eyes, turning to swat her boyfriend away.

"It ain't polite tah read other people's diaries." She informs him, though it was plain to see that she isn't at all bothered by his spying.

He shoots her a smug smirk.

"Y' not denyin' that 'm a good kisser." She swivels her chair around to face him, returning his glance with a coy smile. Then, after a few seconds of holding his gaze, she shrugs.

"Not yet. Yah're gonna have to try and prove yourself before I make any more decisions." He reaches out to brush his bare fingertips across her cheekbone, an action that still makes her shiver five years after the first time he'd done it.

"Really?" He whispers.

"_Oui_." She answers stubbornly in his native language. She knows he can't resist her when she speaks French.

"Dat ain't fair." He complains, equally stubborn as his fingers trace her collarbone, moving to flit over her shoulders. She squirms under his touch, well aware of what he is trying to do.

"You're the one who isn't bein' fair." She almost growls. He raises an eyebrow and cocks his head to the left.

"Really?"

"Yes." She agrees with his question, and his smirk just intensifies, his hands moving down her sides at an unbearably slow pace. "Stop it!" It is his turn to shrug.

"_Non_."

"_Oui_." She mumbles, very distracted by the fact that one hand is now slipping under her thighs, the other hooking her legs around his waist. "Stop." She insists again, but this time her protest is weak and feeble, and he takes no notice of it, his hands coming to rest on her lower back in support. She buries her face in the crook between his neck and his shoulder, inhaling his spicy scent. "You're mean."

His chest shakes in silent laughter.

"Really?" He repeats, but this time she doesn't agree.

"No." She sighs, lifting her face to meet his eyes. "Jus' infuriatin'." He grins.

"I try." He assures her. She rolls her eyes.

"Of course yah do, you swamp rat!" She mutters under her breath, looking away, though his lips crush onto hers and move her face to a more comfortable angle. She manages to make an irritated noise as he pulls away, success dancing in his eyes.

"Did I prove m'self?" He asks, though he knows the answer.

"Are yah gonna kiss meh again if I say yes?" His grin widens, and he gently lays her down on her bed, moving so that his arms are on either side of her shoulders, one finger trailing suggestively over the buttons of her shirt.

"I'll do more dan dat." He promises, leaving her breathless.

"Yes." She manages to choke out, and two of his fingers pop the top button. But then he pauses.

"_Chere_? Y' always askin' me why I wasn' afraid. But y' got the gist of it in what y' just wrote." She looks up at him, unable to reply. He gives her a small smile, his lips brushing her ear. "True love breaks all barriers." He murmurs, and every time he touches her, she knows that it is true.

* * *

_Aww, a healthy dose of fluff. I really tried to up the detail in this one- it was a bit of an experiment, since I NEVER use the present tense in my writing. Reviews are much appreciated. Hint hint! :)_

_Allyg1990_


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